The new Wachowski/Tykwer film Cloud Atlas
is a hell of a good movie. If you’re at all curious about it,
go see it in a real theater. It’s a terrific example of what film
can be. Sprawling, uncompromising, beautiful.

It’s also one of those rare films that’s better
than the book. I read the novel
last month in preparation and while I enjoyed it, I found it a
bit flat and hard to get through. The film picks up on all the
interesting themes of the story and tells it more effectively. My
only fear is it might be a bit hard to follow the movie; a plot
synopsis of the story may help you enjoy the movie more and
won’t spoil too much.

I particularly like how they re-imagined the book as a
movie,
changing
the narrative structure. The book is a series
of 6 nested stories told in halves, ABCDEFEDCBA. The film chops that
up and interleaves the stories much more rapidly. That lets them
systematically highlight the common themes and narratives between
each story that makes the whole work so intriguing. They also play
off the stylistic inconsistency of each story, the mix of action,
sci-fi, and farce coming fast and furious gives the narrative some
much needed variety. Add on top of that great filmmaking, casting (Jim Broadbent!),
makeup, production design, and it’s a rare example of a complete movie
coming together.

I’m also impressed at how the Wachowskis
have stayed true to their vision of the filmmaker’s
art. After the relative failures of the Matrix sequels and the underappreciated
Speed Racer, you could imagine them compromising,
retrenching. But there’s nothing tentative
about Cloud Atlas, it’s an aggressive film. The collaboration
with Tykwer also seems to have worked to everyone’s benefit.